Hyderabad: A recent case in Vankeshwaram village, Nagarkurnool district, has shed light on significant irregularities in the implementation of the Recognition of Forest Rights (RoFR) Act, 2006, across Telangana. Nenavath Jaya, a resident of Vankeshwaram, was granted a title deed for 1.3 acres of forest land under the RoFR Act, despite her earlier claim for three acres being rejected by the district forest officer (DFO). The rejection was based on the fact that the encroachment occurred after the 2005 cut-off date set by the Act.
Jaya's case is not an isolated incident. Kandlavat Anuvamma, a resident of Ippalapally village, was granted 4.33 acres of forest land, despite not meeting the age requirement under RoFR, as she was under 18 years old in 2005, thus violating the provisions of the Act.
A Times of India investigation uncovered several such irregularities, highlighting a broader pattern of misuse and procedural violations in RoFR Act implementation across the state. Documents obtained by the publication show a vast disparity in the number of claims received and the claims recommended by the DFO. In Nagarkurnool alone, the DFO received 11,991 claims covering 39,114 acres, but only 313 claims covering 546 acres were recommended. In contrast, the tribal development office approved 1,973 claims covering 5,037 acres, nearly ten times the DFO's recommendations.
Statewide, more than 11.5 lakh acres of forest land were claimed under the RoFR Act, but only about 1.6 lakh acres were deemed eligible for titles. Despite this, the Telangana government distributed 4.06 lakh acres of forest land in 2023 to 1.5 lakh individuals who were allegedly encroachers and identified as ‘podu’ (slash and burn) cultivators. This land distribution took place just before the assembly elections. Officials attribute the loss of 100 sq km of forest land in Telangana between 2021 and 2023 to such large-scale allocations under the Forest Rights Act (FRA).
Environmentalists have raised concerns about serious violations in the approval process. According to RoFR guidelines, claims should be substantiated with evidence, such as satellite imagery and verifiable records. However, in many cases, recommendations made by gram sabhas and district committees ignored DFO reports that had rejected claims based on evidence of post-2005 encroachments or age violations.
In some instances, there have been allegations of fabricated meeting minutes and the use of facsimile signatures on title deeds, bypassing the legal requirements. In a letter issued in July 2023, the Nagarkurnool DFO highlighted these manipulations and expressed concern that many claims, previously rejected by forest officials, were approved by the district committee despite clear evidence of ineligibility.
Environmentalists and former officials have criticized the widespread misuse of FRA provisions, arguing that the distribution of forest land has been politically motivated. J. Ramesh, an environmentalist with the Nature Friends Environmental Development Society, accused the Telangana government of pressuring officials to issue title deeds to ineligible individuals. He labeled the process as a "scam of unprecedented proportions," claiming it resulted in large-scale deforestation.
Retired Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers have warned that the misuse of FRA provisions has caused irreversible environmental damage, with vast areas of forest land being cleared for cultivation. As the issue continues to unfold, concerns over the long-term impact on Telangana's forests and the credibility of the RoFR Act remain a subject of intense debate.
